Linda Dessau
|
Her Excellency The Honourable Linda Dessau AC |
|
|---|---|
| 29th Governor of Victoria | |
|
Assumed office 1 July 2015 |
|
| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Premier | Daniel Andrews |
| Lieutenant | Marilyn Warren |
| Preceded by | Alex Chernov |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Linda Marion Dessau 8 May 1953 East Melbourne, Victoria |
| Nationality |
 Australia
|
| Spouse(s) | Tony Howard (m. 1982) |
| Children | 2 |
| Residence | Government House, Melbourne |
| Education |
St Catherine's School, Toorak University of Melbourne |
| Profession | Jurist, barrister |
| Religion | Judaism |
| Website | governor.vic.gov.au |
Linda Marion Dessau AC (born 8 May 1953) has been the Governor of Victoria since 1 July 2015. She is the first female and first Jewish holder of the office. She was a judge of the Family Court of Australia from 1995 to 2013.
Dessau was born in Melbourne, the youngest of four children. Her father, John Dessau, arrived in Melbourne from Poland in 1929. At first he took on factory work, but later he became a businessman. He married Sybil, who was born in Melbourne.
Since 1982, Dessau has been married to Tony Howard, a judge of the County Court of Victoria. They have two sons.
She was educated at St Catherine's School, Toorak, matriculating at the age of sixteen. She graduated with a Bachelor of Laws with Honours from the University of Melbourne in 1973 as its youngest law graduate. She worked as a solicitor from 1974 to 1978, and as a barrister from 1979 to 1995, specialising in family law and commercial litigation.
She was appointed to the AFL Commission in November 2007. A supporter of the Essendon Football Club, Dessau started and was the inaugural chair of the Essendon Women's Network in 1997, which for more than a decade has claimed a strong hold in the grand final week calendar. She was appointed to the board of the Melbourne Festival, of which she became President in 2014.
She is one of five Jewish people to have served in a viceregal capacity in Australia, after governors-general Sir Isaac Isaacs and Sir Zelman Cowen, and governors Sir Matthew Nathan (Queensland) and Gordon Samuels (New South Wales).
Dessau was awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 1994, and travelled to the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom to study strategies employed to reduce delay within the court system. She was recognised in 2010 for her service to the judiciary, particularly in the area of family law policy and practice, and to the community, when she was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia. In 2017 Dessau was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia for eminent service to the people of Victoria through leadership roles in the judiciary, to the advancement of economic ties and business relationships, and as a supporter of charitable, sporting and arts organisations.
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